The world of classical music has been anything but harmonious as of late. Earlier this year, the Cleveland Orchestra went on strike after contract negotiations broke down. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra is currently in week seven of their grueling strike, which featured musicians picketing outside the performance hall last Monday night.

The symphonic tension wasn’t reserved for the rust belt. In October, musicians with the Fort Worth Symphony began a concert with a silent demonstration, a warning to orchestra management that the musicians were united in their opposition to cuts proposed during their contract renewal talks.

But news comes today: the Fort Worth Symphony and the AFM Local 72-147 (the musician’s union) have reached an agreement, avoiding a potential strike. Fort Worth musicians have accepted a pay cut so the music can continue in Fort Worth for two more seasons. Details on the agreement can be found after the jump.

FORT WORTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND AFM LOCAL 72-147 REACH AGREEMENT

The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association (FWSOA) has announced that a new collective bargaining agreement was ratified by members of the American Federation of Musicians Local 72-147 on Tuesday, Nov. 16. The terms of the agreement are mostly economic in nature and mandate a reduction in the number of weeks that musicians will receive compensation with the following effects:

2010-11 Concert Season

Musicians will work and be compensated for 45 weeks:

$51,926 / section player

$58,417 / associate principal player

$64,911 / principal player

2011-12 Concert Season

Musicians will work and be compensated for 46 weeks:

$53,080 / section player

$59,715 / associate principal player

$66,354 / principal player

Under the 52-week system, musicians were compensated as follows:

$60,003 / section player

$67,504 / associate principal player

$75,008 / principal player

FWSOA President Ann Koonsman has made the following statements:

“With this new agreement, the musicians are accepting a decrease in pay. None of us are pleased about that, and I ask the community to step forward and to increase their support of the Orchestra.

“We have recruited and employed some of the most talented professionals in the United States. They do a wonderful job and are an asset to Fort Worth. We have a cultural treasure in our midst and we must work harder still to ensure a positive, thriving environment for these musicians.”

The reduction in weeks does not affect the integrity of the FWSO’s Bass Performance Hall series, the Concerts In The Garden summer music festival, or the broad range of community and education concerts currently offered.

The current agreement, adopted five years ago, expired July 31, 2010. This new two-year agreement will expire July 31, 2012.